For Harley Olivia and producer-guitarist Siegfried Meier, “Harley Olivia” is more than a name, it’s a creative force that thrives on risk, humour, and raw honesty. Their latest single, Give It to Me, reimagines one of Harley’s earlier songs with newfound intensity, pairing heavy riffs with a sharp 1950s housewife motif in the video. Also, don’t ask about the cucumber scene.
The two spoke candidly with The Indie Distributor about reinventing old material, the grind of making videos on a shoestring budget, navigating the industry as indie artists, and why community and authenticity matter more than ever.
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The Indie Distributor: Thanks for joining me today. It’s been a big week with the new single and video. How’s the release going?
Harley Olivia: We released the single on July 25, and the video just dropped today, July 31. We even did a livestream this morning to answer questions. Our videos are always outrageous — I usually put Siegfried in situations I find funny, and luckily other people think they’re funny too.
Siegfried Meier: She’s the mastermind. Director, writer — she always has these wild ideas.
The Indie Distributor: The video plays with the “housewife” motif. Where did that come from?
Harley Olivia: The song actually goes back to my old band, Anthems In Ashes. I’ve been performing it live for seven years. When we started as Harley Olivia, we needed material for our first shows, so we reworked a few Anthems songs with synths and heavier sounds. This one took on a new life — my vocals got stronger, I added screams that weren’t there before, and it finally became what I’d always envisioned. The video idea grew from that. I love showing dichotomies, so we contrasted the struggles of a 1950s housewife with modern-day realities.
The Indie Distributor: Did you change the song much in the rewrite?
Siegfried Meier: A bit. We extended the outro, added new guitar parts, and made it heavier.
Harley Olivia: And like I said, the scream wasn’t there originally. Now I can’t imagine the song without it.
The Indie Distributor: You both direct your own videos. How do you pull that off on an indie budget?
Harley Olivia: We keep costs down by doing as much as possible ourselves. I studied theatre and film, so I enjoy writing scripts, directing, and editing. I learned Premiere, made the graphics, and handled the vision. The only things I outsource are filming — since I can’t hold the camera and perform at the same time — and colour grading, because I refuse to hunch over a computer for hours.
Siegfried Meier: Colour grading is like mastering in audio. After being so close to the project, you need someone else to give it that final touch.
Harley Olivia: Exactly. Otherwise you go crazy staring at it too long.
The Indie Distributor: There’s debate about whether full-length videos are still worth it. What’s your take?
Harley Olivia: I know some people think videos are outdated, but I love creating little worlds. That said, vertical content for TikTok and Instagram is just as important — acoustic versions, EDM remixes, collabs. You can drip content to keep momentum. If making a big video weighs you down, skip it and do vertical clips instead. For me, though, I love the process.
Siegfried Meier: At the end of the day, the artist is the product. The music is just advertising for you.
The Indie Distributor: Harley, you were a flight attendant before pursuing music full-time. What was that transition like?
Harley Olivia: It was tough. The job gave me amazing travel opportunities, but the schedule destroyed my health. I’d land in a new country after pulling an all-nighter and pressure myself to go explore when I really needed sleep. Eventually, I realized I had ADHD, which made the exhaustion worse. I was anxious, not eating right, and saying no to music opportunities. Finally, I quit.
But it wasn’t instant. I worked as a housekeeper for six months to get by, then built up vocal coaching alongside performing. Now coaching is a huge part of my life and has made me a better artist, too.
Siegfried Meier: She’s incredible at it. I won’t even record vocals with clients unless she’s in the room. She pushes singers to do their best instead of settling for “fix it in post.”
The Indie Distributor: Where do you stand on AI in music?
Siegfried Meier: I use it as a tool. It’s great for technical fixes — removing reverb from a vocal, isolating instruments for lessons. But we don’t use it to write songs or lyrics. The danger is in things like AI mastering being marketed as equivalent to human work. It’s not.
Harley Olivia: Exactly. Used responsibly, it’s helpful. But people still crave the human touch.
The Indie Distributor: Harley, what advice would you give to indie female artists?
Harley Olivia: Learn as much as you can so you can create in-house — recording, editing, video, songwriting, lessons. And don’t isolate yourself. Celebrate your peers’ successes, collaborate, share fans, and build community. Being an indie musician can be lonely, especially as a solo artist. But if you support one another, it becomes much more sustainable.
The Indie Distributor: What’s next? EP, album, more singles?
Siegfried Meier: I’d love a full LP. An EP feels like a few chapters; an album feels like the full book. True fans still want that journey from start to finish.
Harley Olivia: We’ll still drip singles for the algorithm, but the end goal is a full-length. Our next single, San Francisco, is very different from Give It to Me. We filmed the video on location, and it’s probably my favourite song we’ve done.
The Indie Distributor: You’ve also signed with new management. How’s that dynamic?
Harley Olivia: We’re working with Dark Phoenix 45. They’re artist-first and really believe in what we do. For us, the most important thing was finding people as passionate about our music as we are. They help with grant proposals, festival submissions, and all the time-consuming tasks that pull me away from creating. Having boots on the ground in the U.S. is huge too.
Siegfried Meier: A team makes a difference. Even indie artists need support to navigate festivals, tours, and networking.
The Indie Distributor: Any last words for fans looking to catch you live?
Harley Olivia: Yes! We’re playing Gussapolooza this summer, and the video we just released actually includes footage from last year’s set. It’s one of our favourite shows every year. We’ll also be at Salt and Harvest Fest in Goderich and Sutton Fair in August. For anyone under 19, festivals are the best place to catch us since most of our shows are 19+.
Siegfried Meier: And August 9 is my birthday show — come celebrate.
The Indie Distributor: Perfect. Thank you so much for being here. Looking forward to seeing you at Gussapolooza!
Harley Olivia: Thank you!
Siegfried Meier: Thanks — see you soon.